Friction fire-escape.



No. 642.889. Patented Feb. 6, I900. H. K. WHITNER.

FRICTION FIRE ESCAPE.

- \Application filed June 6, 1899.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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Patented Feb. 6, I900. H. K. WHITNER.

FRICTION FIRE ESCAPE.

(Application filed June 6, 1899.)

2 Sheets8heet 2.

(No Model.)

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STATES IIIRAM K. WHITNER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

FRICTION FIRE-ESCAPE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 642,889, dated February 6, 1900.

Application filed June 6, 1899. Serial No. 719,632. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM K. WHITNER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Friction Fire-Escapes; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in friction fire-escapes.

The object of my invention is to not only afford means for descending a rope more securely than heretofore in case of fire cutting off the usual avenues of exit in dwellings and business buildings, but by means such as I hereinafter show I adapt my friction fire-escape to the purposes of additional loads by means of adjustments readily applied. Friction'fire-escapes as heretofore constructed required an intelligible action in order that the descent might not be too rapid. Hence when such necessary action was slow in be- .ing applied or entirely neglected in a state of great excitement the descent was attended by painful results. In my device, hereinafter set forth, whatever action may be of service will be on opposite linesthat is, relieving the automatically-applied brake force will expedite the descent.

My invention consists in a shoe-brake fireescape of novel construction having a rope of suitable dimensions rove through a basepiece and a brake-lever, so coacting that a bite upon said rope will be effected by virtue of the weight of said rope and by the weight of the person descending, supplemented by a blocking bufier or pad placed upon said rope.

- Figure l in the accompanying drawings is a view in perspective of my improved shoebrake fire-escape as I preferably construct it. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same. Fig. 3 is a view in perspective showing a modification of my brake-lever.

When not including the rope in my descrip tion hereinafter, I prefer to use the term traveler to embrace the combination of parts embodied in my invention in contradistinction to device, which embodies rope and all. I

. A represents the fundamental or base piece of the traveler. A are projections of said base-piece orprolongations ending in enlargements as a means for pivotal connections at A a and a are piercings of elliptical shape at the extremes of said base-piece A.

Bis a bent brake-lever in the form of a right angle, having sections X, X, Y, and Z, forming a circumscribed opening having a rope-bearing free end X at one extreme and a rope-engaging spur Z at the other extreme. The rounding free end of said brake-lever X is at home in contact with piercing a, while the other extreme (the end of section Y) is a spur Z, supplemented by thumb-screw B having a shank b. B is a pivotal connection for said brake-lever contiguous to said spur Z. The function of said brake-lever is to press upon brake-shoe C, said brake-shoe having an upturn pierced projection C and stop or trunnion C shoe is rounded at rope-bearing points C and C and in conformity with the shape of the rope the under side of said shoe between said rounded points C and C is hollowed out, grooved, or guttered in order that said rope may travel in line of said under side of said shoe. D is one or more thicknesses of leather or other substance provided with piercings and adapted to bite upon said rope, acting as a buifer, as hereinafter shown. v

E is a rope of suitable dimensions rove through the base-piece A and bent brake-lever B and provided with a dead-eye E at the top and enlargements E at its bottom in order than when the height is miscalculated Said the person descending will not drop off the end of said rope. for said apparatus to be building.

G is a sling to encircle the person about the chest under the arms. G is a slide to F is a suitable anchorage properly fixed to the secure said sling about the person descendin g. G and H are metal connections between said sling G and piercing C hereinbefore described.

In a reduction to practice I find that the same adjustment does not produce like results upon a rope of same diameter, but of ICO various textures or twists in the strand. Again, each successive descent upon the same rope reduces the diameter of said rope to a certain extent. Hence I find that in dispensing with the thu nib-screw B and forming the side of the spur Z within the brake-lever into a crotch 0, Fig. 3, we may obtain a single adjustment bite without the interposition of a shoe; but in a reduction to practice I do not find the results as satisfactory as I had hoped for. Hence I preferably interpose a shoe and provide an adjustable pressure by means of the thumb-screw B and its shank b. In an extensive reduction to practice I find said traveler as herein shown admirably adapted to be used in combination with a Wire rope about seven thirty-seconds of an inch in diameter and having a cotton core, about which are laid six twisted strands of seven wire threads each, making a very efficient combination for the purposes to which said device may be applied. However, I do not propose to dedicate to public use the method of dispensing with an interposed shoe and tension thumb-screw.

Starting at the dead-eye E, following the tracing of the rope rove through the traveler, note its entering piercing a and passing through witha perceptible S-bend. Next it lies between the body of the base-piece A and under side of shoe 0 within section Y of said bent brake-lever and then makes an abrupt bend through piercing ct and brake-lever free end X. Then of its own weight said rope E makes an abrupt bend, forming another S, and is pendent to the bottom of the building. It will be readily understood that the shank b of thumb-screw B rests upon the upper side of the brake-shoe O. Said brake-shoe end X to its home in contact with piercing a This, with the action of the coacting parts, will cause said shoe 0 to act as a brake to the passing ropeE as the traveler descends by virtue of the weight of the person attached to said traveler. We have still another force exerting its influence toward applying the brake. The weight of the person is thrown into said sling G, and,through the connections G H, C, C, and C the last resting upon the horizontal section Y of the bent brake-lever B, in proportion to the amount of weight thrown into sling G will be the amount of pull of stop 0 upon said horizontal section Y of said brake-lever. While this is not a locking force, because of the relative positions of the various parts contributing to this function, What force we do get will be in proportion to the weight in said sling-a very good feature in an admirable device. lVith the parts thus properly adjusted I have made provisions for a recognizable seal, indicating that the adjustment made before placing the device in a position for emergency has notbeen tampered with. This may be effected by passing a frail thread of wire through the piercings t and 'L' in the thumb-screw B and fastening them to any contiguous part of the device.

The fundamental principle of my invention lies in utilizing the Weight of the pendent parts beneath the traveler, so coacting upon a brake-lever that said traveler will be retarded in its passage along a rope in descending saidrope. Hence it must be ob vious that if said pendent weight below said traveler causes too great a retardation to said traveler the safest method of affording relief would be to lift said pendent rope, thus allowing the frce end of the brake -lcver to swing away from its home in contact with extreme a. Another method of relief would be to take the tension off of the shoe by withdrawing shank b of said thumb-screw 13 On the other hand, with suffioient tension upon the shoe-brake a person pulling upon the rope end E or the person descending could add to the retarding force, inasmuch as said pendent rope is within reach while descending. As a precaution in the absence of any intel ligible action in connect-ion with the descent of a very heavy person buffer D should be some distance from the ground. \Vhen the traveler reaches said buffer D, the latter will contact with the free end X of said brakelever, thereby increasing the bite of said traveler upon said rope E.

Having thus fully described my invention, I will now in claims point out what is new and novel.

1. In a friction fire-escape,the combination, with arope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of a brake-lever having a rope-bearing free end X, and a spur adapted to engage with said rope, a basepiece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a friction fire-escape,the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of a brake-lever having a supplemented spur and a bent long arm provided with a rope-bearing free end X adapted to engagewith said rope, a base piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, and a brake shoe adapted to engage with said supple mented spur, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of abrake-lever having a spur provided with a thumb-screw adapted to engage with a brake-shoe and having a long arm provided with a free end X adapt- ICC ed to engage with said rope, and a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brakelever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, a thumb-screw B and a brake-shoe O, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of abuilding, of a brake-shoe having stop 0 adapted to engage with a brakelever and means whereby a person may be suspended from said brake-shoe, a brake-1ever adapted to engage with said brake-shoe and provided with a free end X adapted to engage with said rope, and a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

5. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of the building, of a brake-lever B having section Y adapted to engage with brake-shoe C, a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, and a brake-shoe provided with stop 0 and means whereby a person may be suspended from said brake-shoe G, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of a brake-lever B having a spur Z adapted to engage with a thumb-screw B and provided with a free end X adapted to engage with said rope, and a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever an d provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, a thumbscrew B having a shank b and a brake-shoe O, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

'7. In afriction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of a brake-shoe 0 having a stop 0 adapted to engage with brakelever B and provided with piercing 0 adapted to engage with sling G, a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, a brake-lever B, and a sling G, and means whereby said sling may be secured to said brake-shoe O, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

8. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, with a rope adapted to be placed pendent upon the outside of a building, of a base-piece A having projections A and provided with piercings a and a adapted to engage with said rope, and a brake-lever adapted to engage pivotally with said base-piece and provided with spur Z, and a brake-shoe 0, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

9. In a friction fire-escape, the combination, of a rope E having a dead-eye E and enlargement E a buffer D having piercings adapted to engage with said rope, a brake-lever having a free end X adapted to engage with said buffer, and a base-piece adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever and provided with piercings adapted to engage with said rope, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

10. In a friction fire-escape,the combination, a rope E having dead-eye E andenlargement E a buffer D having piercings adapted to engage with said rope, a brake-lever having a free end X adapted to engage with said buffer and provided with spur Z, a thumb-screw B adapted to engage with said spur Z, and with brake-shoe O, a base-piece A having projections A adapted to engage pivotally with said brake-lever and provided with piercings a and a adapted to engage with said rope, and a brake-shoe 0 having stop 0 adapted to engage with the horizontal section Y of said brake-lever and provided with piercing O, a

sling G, adapted to engage with said piercing C, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HIRAM K. WHITNER. WVitnesses:

RITA BRADT, Geo. B. ADAMS. 

